How will Nick Young do with the Warriors? Get open shots, make open shots, it should be good

Special to The AthleticSep 20, 20175

By Todd Whitehead

Last season, the Warriors turned JaVale McGee — an under-achieving, free-agent goofball — into a hyper-efficient, NBA-champion dunk machine. This summer, they took on another reclamation project: mercurial shooting guard Nick Young.

Just like his buddy JaVale, the sometimes-silly Young has been derided for mistakes in the past. Last season, McGee quieted his critics and excelled with the Warriors, because the team helped him to distill his game down to its essence: blocking shots, running the floor, and catching lobs. This season, Young is set to benefit from the same type of role specialization — he’ll be asked to do just one thing: shoot open shots. And he’s going to thrive doing it.

Young had a hard time in L.A.

There are plenty of reasons to be excited about joining the Warriors, but for a score-first, score-second kind of player like Young, having extra help to get his shot off is probably near the top of the...